“We’re seeing about four newly homeless youth per day and overall the numbers have more than doubled since 2011,” said Christina Trujillo, community relations coordinator for Posada.

Trujillo said many of those youth (ages 18 to 25) are former foster kids who have aged out of that system and youth whose parents no longer want to or can support them.

Most are living on the streets or “couch surfing,” a term for moving from house to house each night.

With the numbers growing, Posada officials have realized the need to provide services to homeless youth.

“We saw the need for finding a safe, welcoming place for them to be,” said Trujillo.

In September, Posada opened the youth drop-in center at its office, 225 Colorado Ave.

The center, which does not provide overnight shelter, is open from 8 a.m. to noon, Monday through Friday, and 4 to 7 p.m. on Monday.

“This is a place where they can come and make themselves something to eat, take a shower, get clothing and just hang out with other young people,” said Anne Stattelman, director of Posada.

The center has a TV room, computer lab, full-functioning kitchen, bathroom and shower, and a living room area with couches.

There also is a clothing bank where clients can help themselves to a variety of clothing items and a free breakfast is served every Tuesday.

Since opening its doors, the center has remained busy with an average of about 20 youth per day visiting the site.

Raven Smith, homeless youth outreach coordinator, said the center is providing a safe, clean environment for the youth along with guidance and referrals to educational, medical and social services.

“We do a lot of case management here,” Smith said. “We show them what services are available and what other resources are available like the Soup Kitchen, the Salvation Army and the mission (Wayside Cross).”

The center also provides referrals for health care, including mental health care.

Smith said while the center provides a temporary reprieve from the streets for a few hours a day, the goal is to help this youth population break away from their homelessness.

“Right now we’re in the process of trying to get some transitional housing for these people,” Smith said. “That’s our goal for the coming year.”

In the short time since the center opened, Smith said there have been success stories.

He said four youth have gained employment, a transgender youth was assisted in getting into a transitional house in San Francisco and several others are in the process of earning a GED.

“These are small gains, but we’re making progress,” Smith said. “Most of these youth don’t want to be in the situation they’re in but don’t know what to do. With our help, we’re hopeful we can get them off the streets.